Help an Indie Writer

 Book Promoters of Twitter

Alan Place - Indie Writer

Each week on Twitter, I get approached by promoters, saying they can help promote my writing to a new level, and asking why I stopped writing?

The best way to help me, and encourage me to write again is to buy a few inexpensive eBooks of mine.

The issue is, while they are correct, greater exposure would possibly help my sales, I have to pay a minimum of $200, which means I will be $200 down, before I begin, that is more than I earned as an Indie Writer in 15 years

The Price to me of being an Indie Author

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

The Appeal of my eBook -The Awakening

For years, I read stories of Indie Writers who made it big, that was not the case for me, as was proven this month.

This month, I was approached by writer Mary Cubica, she came across my story about India, saw its possible success, and asked if I would agree to her sending a request for contact to her agent. Naturally, I agreed, but knowing the cost of publicity was beyond me.

The question nobody asks a successful Indie Author is, how much did success cost? The reeason the question is not asked is nobody wants to know the price of success

Publicity costs

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

Curse of the Indie Writer

This week, I had to turn down the opportunity of publicity for my work as a writer, why?

I couldn't validate the cost of publicity, even though it was small. A $27 payment a month, may seem small, but that is more than I earn as an Indie Writer in a year.

One discussion could be the more exposure I get, the greater the possibility of recouping the costs, that is valid to a point. My position is that in my 15 years as a writer, I never earned more than $20 a month, that was back in 2011, when my eBook content was selling well. I haven't earned any royalty fees for several years from Draft2Digital

What do you expect?

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

A Multi-Genre Writer

I was shocked at the news I had sold a children's short story eBook this week. The shock was more that I had sold an eBook than anything else. eBook sales over the last decade have been scarce, if not rare, for me, which is why I was further suprised to read that Writers Realm, and Thevoguewriters wish to promote my work on their sites on Twitter.

There are few genre types I have not written, I did try to write a sex story, but found it hard to write a story were sex is the story, stories like the one on this post, and A Sailor's Love contain sex, but it is part of the story arc, not the theme

Possible writing projects

Alan Place - Indie Writer

                                                                     The growing WIP   

As my friend in Gloucester is a history teacher, I have time on my hads while she works, to expand some of my WIP (work in progress) projects, as I am going to contact her only during lunch time (12:00 - 2:00), and after 7:00 pm.    

I have a large number of projects I can expand, now I have a reason to resume my writing, as my friend is interested in what I write. I am writing for pleasure, not for sale these days. 

The new age of Alan

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

The writer returns

From today, I hope to be able to write more to some of my unfished short story section, beginning with Wild Child, the story of a lady, who in her 40's decided to quit the sex trade to try and find her identity.

If I finish my story, I aim to add it to my page on Amazon, rather than adding it to my Draft2Digital page, as D2D have not paid me in years for my sales, I have nothing to lose by adding the futre books to Amazon, and possibly I have something to gain.

Alan Place - Award Winning Author

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

I didn't believe it

Several times, I have been told I am one of the bestselling Indie Writers some people I used to know had knowledge of.

I never believed that for a minute, my reaction is "If I am a bestseller, Lord help the others," during my heyday (did it happen?) I didn't earn enough for a cup of coffee a week.

Certainly my science fiction series sold over 1,000 eBooks, but at less than $0.70 cent a copy, to use a quote "ain't  worth a hill of beans."

Most authors hate telling you what they earned from writing, in my case, less than $1.00 a month over 16 years as a writer

Death of a news hound

 Now is the "Telling Time."

                                                          Alan Place - Indie Writer

This short story, written 13 years ago will take a new meaning by the end of this month.

The story was written after I almost died in my sleep one night. The week prior to the night in question had been strenuous, and tiring for me, as I got little sleep. By Friday, I was beat, I'd had two incidents of choking, and then fell into a dead sleep.

By the end of this month, if I don't get a reply from the literary agent I contacted in London, it will be the end of all my hope to be recognised as a writer

I have a book in print available on Amazon

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

The only  story of mine in print

Being a self-published writer, with no opportunity of getting a contract, it was up to me, to produce a paperback book for sale on Amazon several years ago.

The eBook version has sold six copies, but the main issue I had selling the book is I was pro-Israel; all my story did when I mentioned I had written it was get me a lot of hate mail on Twitter.

Despite the comments, the eBook was my bestseller of 2017.

Second Thoughts

Alan Place - Indie Writer

                                                              I have noting to lose

When I look at the prospects of starting to attempt to move to a site, with the hopes of selling some of my eBook selection. I find myself haunted by the dilemna of the Indie Writer, cost of the outlay Vs possible income.

A new Website

A wise choice would be to create a page on Barnes & Noble, as this is the site which has sold most of my ebooks

The New Age of Alan Place

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

                                                                      Alan's Books

When I get the urge to write again I hope to begin with my erotic romance story. This excerpt garnered lots of praise from various sites online, how much was genuine is up for question.

Another aspect I may undertake, even for a short time, is to open a website called Alan's Books to see if I can get more sales this way than using Draft2Digital. The only way I could see less for my writing is if I paid the readers to buy the eBooks. If I got fees once in three years, that was a miracle, the reason is the use of the lending library system. This system allows readers to rent out as many books as they like for a fee, the library pays the distributor, but unless there are masses of sales, the writer never sees anything.

Some of the writing I may do will be in the Gothic styles, I have a romance I am working on, and a version of the story may be turned into a horror story, similar to Ghosts Don't Dance.

Writer's Lift

 Sell an eBook

                                                               Amazing Facts

Here is an Amazing Fact, which is both funny, and sad, why?

If - big IF - I can sell an eBook a month, I may earn enough to be paid by my birthday in October, for the first time in two years, and some people say I am a bestselling Indie Writer; if that IS the story, wriitng died a long time ago

Save the Indie Writer

 Alan Place - Indie Writer

                                       Perils of an Indie Writer

Buying one of my eBooks wouldn't cost you the earth for an inexpensive gift for the reader in your family, but it would mean the world to me; your purchase would give me the urge to write.

I may not have a lot for sale, but I have a lot of stories on file, which I could add to the stores, if there were some sales.